A cancer professor honoured by the Queen believes an appeal backed by the Daily Record could help make Scotland’s largest ­children’s hospital a UK leader in life-saving clinical trials.

World-renowned clinician Brenda Gibson – the driving force behind the Schiehallion Appeal – has received an OBE at Buckingham Palace for her dedication to finding cures for kids.

Over three decades, Professor Gibson has supported countless youngsters and their families through their cancer journeys at the Royal Hospital for Children in Glasgow.

And after naming the hospital’s cancer wards after Perthshire ­mountain Schiehallion more than 20 years ago, her vision to give young cancer and blood disorder patients better access to life-saving drugs in Scotland is being brought to life via an appeal by the same name, led by Glasgow Children’s Hospital Charity.

The Queen gives OBE to Brenda Gibson (Image: PA)

The professor of paediatric ­haematology said the appeal could vastly expand the hospital’s clinical trials centre if it reaches its £500,000 target.

She said: “We want to be a ­competitive centre so that children don’t have to leave Scotland to get access to these early phase trials. If the drugs companies and ­universities are only choosing one or two centres throughout the UK, we want to be as competitive as Great Ormond Street or any of the other centres nationally.”

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For children whose ­treatment has failed or who have seen cancer return, trials can be their final hope of survival.

New drugs are often tested on adults, then scientists establish what treatment is safe for a child and open early phase trials. Only three or four centres in each country carry out each trial.

Prof Gibson, who was named in the honours list in June, said the appeal cash would be used to hire the staff needed to create a ­superior clinical trials centre.

The Schiehallion Appeal is hoping to reach its £500,000 target in order to provide better access to life-saving drugs (Image: Stuart Wallace)

She said: “To be competitive we need to have the resources you need to conduct a well-run trial.

“You need to be able to feed the data back to the companies to see if their drugs work. To do that you have to have a data manager and there are very stringent rules. You will also need research nurses to collect the samples.

“We see the current centre as a Scotland-wide facility and it’s about trying to make us as attractive as possible to someone looking to test their drug in the UK. We hope that one day we can get to a place where Glasgow University could be the sponsor for national trials UK wide and Glasgow would be the lead centre.

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“The outcome for all children with cancer has improved a lot over the last three decades and all of that improvement has come from clinical trials.

“Our ultimate goal is to provide as much as possible as close to home as possible for these children.”

Glasgow Children’s Hospital ­Charity’s chief executive Shona Cardle said: “She embodies everything that makes the ward such an incredible place – a constant source of strength, hope and support for children and families during their darkest days, months and years.”

Layla's story

Toddler Layla Greene, from Renfrew, is suffering from stage four neuroblastoma.

Just weeks before her diagnosis in March, the two-year-old, from Renfrew, was running wild listening to Justin Bieber and Little Mix.

Layla's mum hopes a trial drug will help her treatment

Now the cancer is in her kidney, liver, bones, brain and back.

After enduring eight rounds of chemotherapy, it’s hoped Layla will soon be ready to undergo surgery, followed by radiotherapy and a bone marrow transplant.

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But her family say her life may depend on a clinical trial if her treatment does not work.

Mum Louise said: “This appeal works in Layla’s timescale. She could take a trial drug at the end of her treatment. By that time, the money could be there and the hospital will have access to the drugs they need. But if this appeal doesn’t help Layla, it can help another child in the same situation.”

Cannon's story

Cannon Wiggins’ parents believe pioneering treatment and clinical trials in the US saved their boy and they want the same for children in Scotland.

Cannon was just a baby when he began treatment for aggressive childhood cancer neuroblastoma - the very same day his twin brothers were being born at the same Florida hospital.

Cannon has won the battle against cancer after a successful clinical trial (Image: Daily Record)

After a long battle which almost took his life, Cannon, now five, has beaten cancer and his mum Melissa, from Irvine, Ayrshire, has donated £50,000 raised in his name to the Schiehallion Appeal.

Cannon’s cancer was already stage four when he began treatment and went to Philadelphia for more than 100 hours of chemotherapy, followed by a stem cell transplant.

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Born with only one working heart chamber, known as Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome, she endure open heart surgery at just a few days old and was fitted with a mechanical heart before going on to have a transplant as a toddler - the first child in the world to endure both procedures.

But after overcoming so much, Abigail, now 12, has been dealt another cruel blow.

After complaining of headaches and pain in her jaw, bone marrow tests revealed she had Burkitt’s Lymphoma - a rare and aggressive form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

If you want to donate to the Schiehallion Appeal follow the link below (Image: Daily Record)

Abigail, from Lenzie, East Dunbartonshire, endured six rounds of chemo, which was deemed a success, but in December medics discovered the cancer had returned to her abdomen.

For now, medics are happy with how the schoolgirl has responded to her latest treatment but the family can not be sure what the future holds.

Mum Gillian said: “We have experienced living away from home for Abigail’s treatment and know what it would mean to have new treatments available for children at home.”